Inheritance
by Rei Asakura
Summary: Chaptered. Subaru is dying, and returns to his rainy ancestral home to set things right with the Sumeragi and Sakurazuka clans and pass along his inherited secrets.


**Disclaimer:** I don't own X or anything in it, etc etc. This is the last disclaimer.

"And whether you came from the tribe of the choleric, or of the voluptuous or of the fanatic or of the vengeful, in the end all your passions became virtues and all your devils, angels." Nietzsche, _Thus Spoke Zarathustra_

**Inheritance ** - Chapter 1

A strangely dislocating sense of nostalgia and apathy came over Subaru as he stood surveying the clustered throngs of people crowded around his grandmother's coffin. Her well-wrapped body was inside, and that morning, their hands had crossed for the last time as he had folded six coins for crossing the rivers of hell into her wrinkled, dry grasp. The echoing temple was filled with the echoing chant of the priest, intermittent clapping, and the monotone buzz of chatter.

Subaru would need to prepare for the first seven day interval after Sumire's death, when offerings were made to help her spirit in its passing. He had already received the gifts and condolences of his relatives and said his personal goodbyes; now all that was left was for individual stragglers to clap, pray, and bid farewell to woman who had ruled the Sumeragi clan for decades. Everything around him presented itself with a sense of chaos, and a sense of vertigo forced itself even on Subaru's structure of calm. His grandmother's corpse had become a symbol for his own new beginnings.

He wondered what Hokuto's funeral would have been like; in the fifteen years since her death, he still found himself wishing that he had been able to attend, and now he even felt himself inanely hoping that it had been more genuine and cheerful than Sumire's. The faces he saw were tense and upset, but little real grief. Even one the one he saw bobbing towards him on the human current.

"Takashi," he said, greeting his favorite cousin.

"Subaru." Takashi replied morosely. "This is a sorry business."

"It is."

"Yes, well. As expected." The older man sighed heavily. "The entire rat pack's here, I see. I could've gone another five years without seeing Yukiko and Sakurai."

"I'm afraid they're going to be here for some time. I've asked them to stay."

"Are you already making nefarious plans that include your least favorite relatives?" Takashi asked, iron-colored eyebrows twisting. "Should I be concerned?"

"Not at all; I'm very fond of you."

Takashi opened his mouth to reply and then shut it with an uncertain smile. "Well, I'm-glad to see you," he said finally, offering his hand. "And...my condolences on your grandmother's death. She'll be missed."

"Thank you," Subaru replied, taking the hand and letting go. "I know her death is a loss to you as well. How have you been?"

Takashi's face soured. "Lonely."

"Masao?"

"Masao?" Takashi repeated sarcastically. "No, I don't see Masao anymore. He drinks too much and finally realized his wife might not appreciate his little affairs on the side. God forbid that man come out of the closet."

"I'm sorry."

"I've decided that _I'm_ not. What a snot."

Takashi was self-centered and materialistic. He had had dreams of culinary school, but was more valuable as one of the Sumeragi's better business consultants.

The silence between them was not entirely comfortable. The temple hall's open doors were letting in sheets of cold wind. Takashi wondered why Subaru didn't call an end to the ceremony- the prayers were over.

"We aren't the only ones gossiping, I see." the clan heir remarked mildly, scanning his family.

"They're just scared. Wondering what you're going to do. The last exciting event was a few months ago, when Hatsumomo forced her husband to annul their marriage. It was for the best." A drop of water rolled down his long nose and plopped to the ground.

Subaru folded his hands into the sleeves of his kimono. "There is actually a substantial protocol in place for the next few months," he said, answering Takashi's unspoken question. "No radical changes are scheduled for the _immediate_ future." His voice was dry.

"And after that?" Takashi asked soberly, looking at the young heir with some trepidation. Subaru smiled at Takashi's defensive stance. He knew there was still trust between them.

"Don't worry," Subaru repeated. "I'll take care of everything." His sense of guardianship had doubled recently. Families filled him like small stones in a balloon: he could feel his responsibility stretching over them like the shade of a pavilion. Such an awe-inspiring and precious feeling that he knew would slip through his hands, too, eventually.

"Worrying is my fundamental state of being. I couldn't deny it even if I tried. I would rather gloriously celebrate it, then take Xanax in the morning." Takashi announced. That morning, he had discovered a leak in his bathroom. His _bathroom_. The reason why Subaru had moved the entire administration to the most barbaric of the Sumeragi family estate's sections was beyond him, but it contributed to his sense of unease. A man's bathroom should really be one of his inviolable places of refuge, in Takashi's opinion, but he got the feeling it was just one on a long list of privations to come.

Already Subaru was shaking things up, as the family had always expected him to, but he spoke with assurance and entitlement that flew in the face of the grieving he was supposed to do. It was true that Subaru had changed drastically after the death of his sister, but those parties relevant to and included in administrative decisions were stunned and surprised. There were already workmen crawling all over the estate, stacks of paperwork passing through the secretaries' offices, and bewildered and intrigued family members milling about. The small, expected bit of the boy he had once known was missing. He checked off another one of his trepidations on a mental checklist: Subaru gone nuts-thinner than ever, swollen with a peculiar serenity that buoyed him like a lily pad on a bubbling pool of chaos-, check; dreary and damp weather, check; grief compounded by unbearable relatives, emphatic check.

Takashi had his own neurotic, half-hearted greetings to make, but as he circled through the crowd, Subaru tipped him an acknowledging glance that made his stomach shift. He trusted Subaru's intentions for the main, but the effects of his actions were much more suspect.

Subaru himself didn't notice the cold very much, but his older cousin was exuding palpable discontent. His executive hairstyle was practically melting over his forehead, strands of hair stuck to the sides of his horsey, unfashionable face, thin mouth was set in what looked like a permanently harangued grimace. The shuffling masses of his relatives and guests looked no less put-upon. Subaru decided with amusement that the farewell had gone on long enough to satisfy even the most scrupulous of his aunts, and signaled the temple attendant to ring the ending bells.

As soon as the crowd clumped together near the steps and began trickling out, he followed, immersing himself reassuringly in their heavy mass. As he left the shelter of the temple's roof, his slim figure became nearly obscured by the heavy curtain of rain falling. He kept Takashi in his peripheral vision like a buoy, bobbing in the sea of mourners. There was a futile mass unfurling of umbrellas that Subaru didn't bother with; it was a short walk. The cold rainwater damped his hair to his skull.

A reluctant file of people followed the small path out from the temple forest onto the edge of a smooth gravel path that lead into the northern compound. Takashi, having bravely elected to be the first to leave the temple, chafed his arms and swore as he stumbled up the steps onto the porch of the main house, feet sliding on the mud-covered floor. Sunao, Itachi, Wakuno, Kirihara, Erika, and Hatsumomo followed and pushed Takashi from behind. He was crowded forward and began to lose his balance on slimy wooden floorboards, until, with another crank of anxiety, Subaru grabbed his elbow with an iron grip and propelled him to safety. Takashi flattened himself against the screen behind him. The rush to get into the warm reception hall was insane, he complained mentally. God, he was cold. The place where his shoulder touched Subaru's- his ridiculously intimidating savior- ached with cold.

"Come with me," Subaru breathed into his ear. "I need to talk to you."

"I...I...about what?" He said weakly. "Now?"

"It's important," Subaru replied lowly. "Just while everyone is settling in, I'd like to talk to you." Takashi felt the screen rattle behind his back as Subaru quietly slid it open with the hand behind his back. Even with this warning, however, he was unprepared when Subaru's hand on his arm tightened and yanked him backwards into the hallway, pulling the recalcitrant man off his feet and into the dim passageway and sending the screen whooshing back into place in almost the same movement.

"A little warning?" he hissed, straightening his jacket and making sure he still had his handkerchief.

"I promised I would be quick." The air pressing around them was damp and close.

"Then tell me already!"

"Not here. I'd rather we weren't overheard."

"Ah." Takashi said nervously, darting a glance at the pale skin emerging from the gloves as Subaru took his gloves off. "I see."

"Takashi." Subaru said gently, eyes solemn. "Am I scaring you?"

"I..." Takashi couldn't say anything; the words stuck in his throat like glue. He could feel a lock of hair sliding down his temple. "No, it's just...You..."

"I'm not here to hurt anyone."

Takashi nodded mutely.

Subaru tucked his gloves briskly into his _obi_. His fingers were reddish. "And much less you. You're still my favorite." He smiled.

"Right." Takashi breathed unhappily. "Though I bet you won't be coming over to my house for treats anymore." He could see a pattern of shadows shifting on the waxed paper panels of the screen as more people filled the narrow wooden porch outside.

"Maybe if I get hungry."

"Do you even eat anymore?" Takashi jibed half-heartedly. He took a deep breath and said, "Listen, I-I'm just not sure about this. Things are different now, and I don't think I'm-well, you're very innovative, and I'm a traditional man. Maybe there's someone else better suited for...this." He trailed off with a shrug.

"I like your traditionalism, cousin. That's one of the reasons I picked you. I am different," he said sweetly, with an ironic slant to his eyes, "but _you_ are the same."

"What you've done, what you do, it doesn't bother you?" Takashi blurted suddenly.

"Only as much as is expected. Come on, you've been shivering this whole time. It'll be warmer once we start moving." The wooden beads of Subaru's prayer necklace clacked as he bent over and removed the straw sandals he had been wearing.

"They haven't changed?" Takashi continued, in the same shaky voice. Subaru paused in sliding back the shoji screen that would lead them further into the house.

"No."

"Not even-the marks on the backs?"

"No." Subaru said, after a small moment of rain-filled quiet. "Those are still there." He stopped short and then shoved the shoji screen open. "Coming?"

"I guess so." Takashi said shortly, following obediently.

They were moving downwards, Subaru purposefully picking hallways and doorways without pausing. Takashi had been lost past the first flight of stairs, but even he realized that they were moving into older, unused parts of the house. It was unnerving to enter places he had never been permitted to enter before. Subaru had moved the main administrative powers-that-were into the northern section of the Sumeragi compound- a far cry from the considerably more familiar southern section Takashi knew. He stared at Subaru's thin back, his neck and head like a malnourished plant stem wavering in whatever cold winds blew beneath the Sumeragi house.

"This is an old part of the house." Subaru said, voice breaking the soft silence between their footsteps. "No one but the Sumeragi head can usually access it. The wards we have been passing would have killed you if you hadn't been with me."

"Is that so..." Takashi said weakly. He hadn't felt a thing-Takashi was so normal among his powerful relatives that sometimes he felt blind. He didn't like magic much, or at all; in fact, he blamed magic for his favorite younger relative's odd behavior lately, though everyone knew the story. But Takashi was a little uneasy with that too; he didn't really believe it.

"That explains the dirt." He muttered reassuringly to himself, picking his way down the corridor daintily. A cloud of dust settled on the tops of his shiny black shoes despite his cares.

"This room should be a little cleaner," Subaru said, stopping and pushing back a screen. He stepped over the threshold, bare feet whispering on the planks. Takashi followed uncertainly. This was an awfully long way to come for a short conversation.

The room was small and cramped, with piles of paper and scrolls cluttering the floor. There was a tiny table squeezed into one corner next to a half-open window. It wasn't really a 'window', per se, Takashi observed, but rather a small inset panel of greased paper that could be slid back. And the room was only a little less dirty than the hallway outside.

"Well, here we are," Subaru said. Takashi nodded, feeling a trickle of fear move down his spine. Subaru's reassurances were stretched thin by this new, erratic behavior.

"Let me get down to it quickly," Subaru began. "I brought you here because I know I can trust you. As you know, things have changed, and I am no longer precisely Subaru Sumeragi- I don't have a complete claim to that name any longer, and I never will again." His mismatched eyes didn't waver. "However, I don't expect to live much longer, so that complication will end with me." Subaru raised a hand to forestall Takashi's protest.

"So even though there will be some time between now and then, I wanted to arrange a few things with you now, and inform you of what you _haven't _been told, for whatever reasons. An unfair exclusion, wouldn't you say? I trust the head on your shoulders even if no one else does." He smiled faintly.

Takashi nodded jerkily. He felt frozen to the spot, unsure of what to say.

"You should know that it's true what they say," Subaru continued mildly. "I am the Sakurazukamori, the guardian of the cherry blossom burial mound. And I achieved that rank by killing the former Sakurazukamori, Sakurazuka Seishirou, who I loved."

In the dim light, his eyes were like glass marbles in their sockets, and something trembled and jerked just beneath the surface of his face. His frame was hard and-alive with a restrained intensity. Takashi, shaken, curled his toes in his expensive shoes. The change lasted only a second, but Takashi knew what he had seen.

"It's a complicated mess, but what you need to know is that the lines of neither clan can terminate in me. They must not. Japan has been protected by the balance of powers our struggles have created over hundreds of years, and the upset of 1999 makes this even more imperative. And so, with these things in mind, I have spent the last few months looking for heirs to continue on after me, and I have found them." Subaru was laid the facts out like playing cards, a snap in his voice reminiscent of the flick of soft cardboard on hard surfaces. "Of course, like everything else, it hasn't been and won't be easy. I have had to count on those few people I can trust to help me with every step. And, Takashi, like I've said—I trust you.

"And I need to you to help me. I want you to let one of the boys stay with you, safely." he continued quietly. "Just for a few days, until things are calm enough for me to move in here semi-permanently. Then he'll stay with me." His pale skin and burning eyes looked a little sick against the icy white silk. "You, I know, won't trouble the boy."

_Unlike the rest of the clan..._Takashi thought, completing Subaru's implication. He cleared his throat. "W- is he one of us?"

Subaru's smile was patient. "A Sumeragi? Just barely, and good enough for our purposes. He's not as strong as I am, but he'll do.

"And you have to take care of him. You mustn't let him fall into my trap. Don't protect him too much. He must be free to understand what he has to do."

"I thought I'd only taking care of him for a few days." Takashi objected, alarmed. He didn't want a child cluttering up his house- it was so hard to keep clean as it was. And Subaru had said he wasn't to bother him.

"Oh, he's not a child. He's harder than that." Subaru said, a slim hand darting up, bird-like, to brush a swathe of black hair away from his forehead. "Don't look so worried. Your face is an open book," he observed, watching Takashi's pale face. "You don't have to say what you think."

"R-right. Okay."

"I'm afraid that you're the only one I want, and trust, to do this task. Let me know if something more can be done to make things easier."

Takashi correctly interpreted this as an order.

"Come on," Subaru said, moving towards the door. "In a few days I'll send you a message, telling you the time to meet my contact in this room with the boy. You'll be able to get past the wards now, but if you try and bring anyone else here, they'll be struck down immediately. I will make certain of it. I won't let you compromise my plans."

"C-Come on, Subaru," Takashi stuttered past his fear, trying to paste a smile on his face. "You know me. I wouldn't do that."

Subaru nodded and exited the room, thoughts already elsewhere again. He did not seem to have noticed, or minded, that Takashi had never really agreed. But Takashi himself was too scrambled to protest.

The voice was soft, thick, and raspy, as though speaking through a mouthful of spit-soaked cotton wool. "Takashi," it said, slowly and wearily, as though the weight of the world was on its bearer's shoulders. "Takashi."

Takashi held very still and turned only his head. "Subaru?" he asked quietly, unsure what to do. If this was a summoning, then he would know- there would be a pretty, fragile little bird tapping at his window, asking for entrance, and he would let it in and listen to it, and then it would not move for a moment, then shiver into fragments of crinkled paper on his living room floor. This wasn't a typical _onmyoujitsu_ summoning. It felt as though Subaru was leaning over his shoulder, slight frame balanced precariously as his whisper husked in Takashi's ear. He would bet that if he looked down, he would see Subaru's hand splayed for leverage on his desk.

"Is that you?" he inquired cautiously, staring straight ahead.

"You need to go," the fading voice said, ignoring him. "Now."

"Now?"

The voice didn't reply, said nothing. Takashi scowled as he stuffed his feet into some heavy boots, irritated. But arguing with a summoning was pointless. Arguing with the suddenly indomitable Subaru was also pointless. He shrugged into a heavy poncho and took a flashlight and an old umbrella as he exited the front door. He'd taken up residence temporarily-he wasn't sure how long Subaru would need him, but at least this way it was convenient-in the compound residences nearby, in a slightly dilapidated three story building of sturdy plaster and soft aged wood. It was still pouring down rain. He shuddered as his feet slipped along the wet stones of the path and squelched in the mud. He could barely see through the thick haze of rain that fell in curtains.

In no time at all, he was drenched to the skin, hair slipping in wet little drabs over his forehead and his skin clammy. The flashlight in his hand was the only source of color, a wavering globe of yolk-tinted light.

_The boy can stay in the second floor guest room,_ Takashi decided, wincing as a handful of cold droplets was flung against his face by the wind. _I suppose he can take care of himself. There are books in the libraries that he can read._ _I'm sure there's a bicycle around here, too. _He tramped over one of the small wooden bridges spanning a decorative stream, casting an absentminded eye on the water lilies clustered around its edge, bobbing darkly under the hard rain. _He'll have to stay out of my room._

Approaching the main house, he ducked onto the narrow porch that fronted every building facing into the courtyard and shucked his shoes. Security was higher than it had been- he had had to pass two guards to get into the courtyard, and he was glad Subaru had forced the I.D. on him after all. Although few people were still awake at this late hour, he felt oddly anxious. For a moment, he huddled against the damp wooden planks, feeling the rain slide down his wax poncho and peering agitatedly into the oily darkness. Then he turned and fumbled with the screen, wincing as it creaked its way open. The outermost hallway was empty, dim, and chilly, and, blowing on his fingers, he quickly took the first intersection, and then the next, choosing quickly to cut off his uncertainty.

This time as Takashi stumbled his way through the dusty, dim hallways, he could feel the spells in his path like a spiderweb, each strand breaking individually across him. Each time one ghosted across his face, he jerked and waved the flashlight spastically.

As he rounded the final corner, he clicked the flashlight off and stuffed it in his pocket: he could hear the faint murmur of voices, and there was a dim balloon of light. He shuffled hesitantly into it, then knocked.

Silence fell. Takashi felt his fingertips chill and sweat gather at his temples. There was a creak, as if someone had risen to their feet, and Takashi felt his heart start pounding. With a cough, he let his knuckles rap against the wooden frame once again, hands shaking. He really, really didn't like magic.

"Who is it? The earnest cousin?"

Takashi straightened up in surprise. "I- y-yes..." he croaked, mouth feeling dusty. "Subaru sent me to meet you. May I come in?"

There was another creaking of floorboards, and suddenly the shoji screen rattled open. The doorway was suddenly filled by a tall, male form, features hidden by backlight. "Please do." The man's tone was flippant and light, but smooth.

Takashi awkwardly stepped in, shaking off his poncho. The tiny little room Subaru had shown him only weeks before was exactly the same, though the layer of furry dust had grown.

His eyes darted around uneasily, finally settling on his ward: a young, incredibly thin boy with a sloppy buzz-cut that highlighted his thin neck and pointed chin and high cheekbones. Takashi winced- no way could he let that haircut stand, even for a few days. His gaze continued on; the boy had the same green eyes as Subaru, with short stubby lashes and long, thin eyebrows that gave him an oddly feline look. He was sitting huddled on a crate, in khaki shorts and a green and white soccer T-shirt.

Before him was a steaming thermos of tea.

Takashi turned to the other man in the room and nearly fell over with shock.

Honey-colored hair framed a striking, tan face with oval cheekbones and mercurial light eyes. He was also impeccably dressed-perfectly pressed slacks, and a fine white linen shirt. The coat draped over his arm—Dior Homme? "Who are you?"

The man smiled, a beautiful smile that made his face look even more winsome and handsome. "Kigai Yuuto. I've brought your young ward from Wakayama-ken. We've been waiting for you."

_From Wakayama-ken?_ Takashi thought exasperatedly. _We really will have nothing in common._

"I came as quickly as I could," he said aloud. "It's raining quite hard. I hope the boy has a raincoat."

"But you must be cold yourself. Can't you stay and have some tea?"

"Tea?" Takashi, surprised, barely stopped himself from stammering for a moment. Could it hurt? He wasn't really in any hurry to go back into the rain and cold. "Well—fine."

Takashi cast around for a place to sit before deciding unhappily on another dusty crate which he covered meticulously with his neatly folded, waxed poncho. He settled on the lumpy pile cautiously, then redirected his attention towards the boy again.

"What's your name?"

The boy glared at him. "Ryuunosuke."

Takashi stared right back. "And?"

The boy's mouth twisted momentarily in confusion and then anger. "I'm not going to call you _sir_," he hissed in a low voice.

Takashi resisted the urge to roll his eyes. _He's just a boy, after all_, he reminded himself. "Your name is Ryuunosuke Sumeragi. Remember that," he remarked reprovingly. "You own that name now. And I don't want you to call me sir. Takashi-because we are all Sumeragis-will be fine."

The boy was not impressed. His gaze only darkened, and he looked at his bony knees.

"We'll have a cup of tea and then I'll walk the two of you back to Sumeragi-san's house." Yuuto said decisively with a smile, handing over an extra, insulated steel cup.

"The rain isn't that bad. We'll manage." He took a sip of his tea to take the edge off his rebuttal. The tea was beautiful and faintly smoky, with a thick wedge of lemon bobbing it. There was even sugar.

Yuuto smiled that blond, affable smile again. "I'd still like to see Ryuunosuke settled in."

"There won't be much to it. Did you bring anything?" The last was directed, brusquely, to the boy.

There was only silence from Ryuunosuke, so Yuuto said, "He brought a small bag." He indicated a forlorn, battered specimen that Takashi had thought was another bit of the room's dusty detritus.

"Right. Well, like I said, it shouldn't take long. Ryuunosuke will only be staying with me for a few days."

Yuuto's smile didn't change. It was like highly polished wood. Takashi shrugged bad-temperedly. "Alright. I hope you brought an umbrella."

"I don't think the rain will bother me," Yuuto replied enigmatically, picking up the thermos and hefting it towards Ryuunosuke. "Another cup before we go, Ryuunosuke-kun?"

The boy let his legs dangle over the edge of the crate he was sitting on and put his tea cup to the side. "No thanks." Ryuunosuke said firmly, looking a little ill. "I don't like Western style tea very much. And you put too much sugar in it."

Yuuto just shrugged and smiled. "Will you be ready to leave when you finish your cup of tea, Takashi-san?"

"Certainly," Takashi replied cordially. "Are you ready?" Neither Yuuto nor Ryuunosuke had a raincoat, he noticed. They would be cold and wet in the rain, even more than he was. For a moment, Takashi held his sense of superiority above the other man's blandishments. At least he'd brought a poncho.

Yuuto didn't look startled, quite, but the rise to his feet was not as fluid as it could have been. "Certainly. Ryuunosuke-kun?"

Ryuunosuke shoved himself off the crate and picked up his bag. Its soft, threadbare fabric looked far too worn to survive a journey of any length, and the boy's hands were careful as he cradled it in his arms.

Yuuto took a moment to blow out the candles, and they left. Yuuto and Ryuunosuke seemed to have no trouble seeing in the dark, damp hallways, but Takashi stumbled several times, especially on the steps upwards. It was with relief and a certain amount of triumph that he approached the better-lit outer corridors and heard the furious drumming of rain. Storm-tossed outside lights cast wild, flickering shadows on the waxed paper shoji screens. Takashi had hinted to Subaru several times that it would be better to modernize and use electric lights instead of lanterns to light the courtyard, but to no avail. As it was, Takashi thought, there was no doubt that a freezing, wet walk awaited his two companions.

With a grunt, he shoved open the last screen and stepped onto the narrow wooden porch, still gritty with tracked-in mud. Ryuunosuke cautiously followed, stepping gracefully over the sill, and immediately started shivering.

"That's some rain," Yuuto remarked cheerfully. He seemed completely unconcerned.

"Indeed." Takashi replied sourly. "Luckily for you, I brought an umbrella. Ryuunosuke should have brought a jacket." He handed over the craggy, half-broken monstrosity, realizing that its fragile state could be seen as another attempted snub. Oh well. Nothing to be done. "After you. Second path on the right." He shrugged his poncho over his shoulders. He was very eager to get this whole thing over with. First the strange summoning, now this freakish duo!

Yuuto stepped off the porch, Ryuunosuke at his side. Takashi followed, and then took the lead as they tramped over the damp wooden bridge, its planks creaking under them. Takashi cast another glance at the dark water flowing swiftly under the bridge. He wouldn't be surprised if he came out in the morning to find most of the lily stems broken under the pressure-the rain was that hard. He could hear Yuuto's expensive bootheels tapping decorously as he followed, unseen. Takashi couldn't suppress a shiver as a lukewarm bead of water, half-warmed by his body heat, slid down his neck. He brushed it away, like an insect, and felt a moment's pity for Ryuunosuke.

It was with satisfaction and relief that he saw his temporary home looming up out of the gloom at them. He would show Ryuunosuke his room and the bathroom, and then make a pot of spiced milk with enough for the both of them, as a sort of peace offering. "This is it," he grunted, grubbing in his pocket for the key. He turned to face them, shivering in his clammy poncho.

The two of them- Yuuto, willowy and saturnine, Ryuunosuke, short and sullen- stood inside of a perfect, glittering balloon that fluctuated oddly in the light coming from the lamps by the door. Takashi stared at it- at them- slack-jawed, until he realized the flowing substance was the rain. The rain- was being pushed away, somehow, droplets sliding off of an invisible surface in streams. It was as though they were standing inside a cage of gold.

And they were perfectly dry. A smirk slashed Ryuunosuke's face, distorted oddly by the rippling water. Takashi felt shock and resentment rising thickly in this throat despite himself.

"What a beautiful house," Yuuto said innocently. "Come, let's get out of the rain?"

Ryuunosuke knew from experience just how lucky he really was. How many rural orphans were plucked out of poverty like he was to be brought up like this? He didn't need his skill at math to tell him how small the probability was. But he hadn't lost a thing by coming here anyway, he added mentally.

His grandparents had taken him in, but they had little money to spare for the expenses of a school child. His grandfather was employed driving buses, and his grandmother tended a large kitchen garden and had shared use of several rice paddies. Ryuunosuke wasn't much of a farm worker. His schoolwork meant nothing to them. He was friendly, but he couldn't afford to participate in any typical after school activities and was too embarrassed by the shabby house to invite his friends over. He mostly spent his summers wandering around the house, bored and lonely, taking out his restless feelings by savaging the lush mountain greenery that grew nearby with a stick, or his hands.

Sometimes he would lie in the grass near the road cut and just listen to the loud buzz of cicadas for hours.

He had been so angry- at his parents, who had died in a traffic accident and left him, at his grandparents for not loving him and for having uncaringly sold most of his parent's possessions; at the village for being the same stupid village it was everyday. And when his sorrow crept over him he realized how alone he was. His grandfather became quite annoyed with his sobs and would turn the volume up on the television to cover their noise. Where were his parent's relatives—the large family they'd spoken of?

He began to see spirits, but they were all also sad. What did he care for them? Nothing. Sometimes they scared him, showing up out of nowhere and making strange noises, moving things. And now he'd been plucked up out of nowhere. Who was anyone to tell him what to do? What did he care for them and their peremptory handling of his life? Nothing. Not a thing.

Four days later, things were going poorly indeed between the businessman and his temporary tenant. Takashi eyed the boy sitting across the table from him suspiciously. Ryuunosuke's elbows looked far too dirty to be resting on the polished antique, and what was in that sandwich in front of him? Its edges oozed something red that had stained the slices of thin white bread around it. The boy was moodily tapping his fingernails against the side of his plate, making a faint clink, clink. He should take that plate to the sink and get it off of his table.

With this in mind, Takashi sighed loudly. Ryuunosuke didn't even look up. With a scowl, Takashi cleared his throat. This time he saw Ryuunosuke's eyebrows twitch, but the boy kept his gaze fixed on his plate intentionally. Takashi angrily slapped his chopsticks on the table. This time Ryuunosuke nearly flinched.

"If that's all you're going to eat, put your plate in the sink. Don't make unnecessary clutter."

Ryuunosuke turned his silent, catlike stare on Takashi. With a scrape that he knew was deliberate, the Sumeragi heir pushed back his chair and walked over to the trashcan. He shook the plate and the sandwich plopped loudly into the garbage, leaving red streaks on the plate.

"What the hell is that, anyway?" Takashi barked in disgust, moved to engage in further conversation.

Ryuunosuke shrugged. "I don't know."

"You don't know?"

Another shrug. "Ketchup."

Takashi recoiled and fluttered his fingers distressedly. "A ketchup sandwich? Oh no." The thought made bile rise in his throat.

"I couldn't find anything else," Ryuunosuke replied sullenly.

"The pantry is full!"

Ryuunosuke just glared, eyes gleaming like gems as he turned away and stalked into the living room, where he threw himself down on the sofa. Takashi, face stiff with disapproval, stood up and used the damp dishcloth he kept constantly near the sink to wipe down the table. As he polished the corners of the table, clenching the white terrycloth harder than was necessary, he couldn't help but be glad that Subaru was coming soon to take the brat to another lesson across the clan compound. Maybe whatever they were learning would pound some common courtesy into the boy's head! He was just one, busy man, not a caretaker. He was only here as a favor to Subaru, he reminded himself.

He busied himself with more chores around the kitchen, reluctant to get back to the work upstairs that awaited him. His back, bad enough already, was sore from bending over the laptop he'd brought. He looked forward with great anticipation to getting home again, where everything was how he liked it.

Soon enough, he could hear the front door open and then shut quietly as Subaru entered and took off his shoes. There was Subaru's gentle murmur as he greeted the boy, and Ryuunosuke's higher pitched reply.

"Go get your jacket," he heard Subaru admonish lightly, and Ryuunosuke's answering clatter of feet up the stairs.

Subaru appeared in the doorway, a slim briefcase in hand, looking tense and weary. He'd taken to wearing kimono while living at the clan compound, and today's was a pale, soft brown like the creamy underfur of a wild animal. There were bluish shadows under his eyes, and his mouth had that same flat rigidity Takashi had seen before.

"Takashi."

Takashi grunted acknowledgment, feeling Subaru's hot, hollow stare on him. He dumped a spoonful of sugar in his coffee. "How are you?"

Subaru didn't reply, just let his heavy-lidded eyes rest on Takashi. His eyes were bitter, the one a dark emerald. _-Like Ryuunosuke's_, Takashi thought with a start. _They have the same eyes._ Subaru regarded him intently, silently, purposefully, as though demanding an answer to his noiseless search. Takashi sweated. He was being measured and found wanting.

"He'll stay with me for tonight." Subaru finally said quietly. Then he left, tall and silent, swooping like a crow behind Ryuunosuke's chatter.

Subaru's disapproval churned in his stomach like hot lead. Damn that boy!

"Subaru. Subaru. Subaru, wake up...please..." The whisper was thin and somewhat familiar. Woozily, Subaru opened his eyes, the dark, shadowy ceiling spinning and blurry before him.

"Who is it? What?" he rasped, scraping his hands over his face and his oddly aching eyes. A small hand brushed his shoulder and he jerked away, turning to face his assailant in the grey moonlight. A young boy was kneeling at the edge of his futon, looking frightened and concerned. Subaru scrabbled to reorient himself.

"Ryuunosuke?" he said hoarsely, after a moment of silence. "What are you doing here?"

"I..." The boy looked uncomfortable, and gestured vaguely with his hands. "You were...I thought I should wake you."

Mystified, Subaru sat up and disentangled himself from the sheets. How he'd gotten so caught up in them was beyond him. His eyes felt sore, particularly the blind one. He raised his hands to them in confusion. His cheeks were wet, and his eyes were puffy. Of course. And Ryuunosuke was here to wake him because Takashi was an ass. "I..."

Ryuunosuke looked worried. Tiredly, Subaru tried to say something comforting. "It's fine. Don't worry about it."

"I'm sorry to wake you, it's just you were..."

Subaru cut him off. "I know. Why don't you go sleep in the second guest bedroom? The blue one." There. That would get him out of the way.

Ryuunosuke hesitated, then nodded. Subaru couldn't smile, but he tried to look approving. "Good. We can move your things in the morning."

The boy started to say something else, but Subaru just stared at him, and eventually he gave up and left, walking softly and disappearing into the gloom of the hallway. Subaru leant forward and chafed his hands for warmth. They were cold and still faintly reddish. He grimaced wearily.

_The dream again...And I scared the boy..._ He sighed. _Oh well. He'd better get used to it._ He coughed a little, chest jerking, then laid himself back down on the futon and rearranged the covers around him again. The rain pattered on the rooftop.

Methodically, he dried his face on his sleeve. _Seishirou..._

_Blood flashed behind his closed eyelids, blood and lightning and rain. Something warm and textured surrounded his hand; his fingers met cold, icy air on the other side. He could feel pricks of rain on his fingernails, but he couldn't see them. Seishirou's heavy, sagging form obscured his view, and though he knew he was curling his hand against the cold, he couldn't see it. He couldn't see his hand- it was buried in...It was buried._

_"Seishirou?" No answer. He wished he could see, but he was blind. Seishirou's form filled his line of vision, too much to take in. The rain was making dark circles of wet fabric on the other man's shoulders. The bridge was floating, the spirit shield surrounding it shrinking like singed plastic. "Seishirou?" There wasn't an answer, and something large and hard began rising in his throat like a fist. _

_Time skipped._

_A warm brush of lips at his ear, and a fading whisper. The words reverberated off of him, resonating through his bones like the toll of a great bronze bell, he was a vessel made solely to be filled with these words and their meaning on this cold, rainy autumn night, he was complete now and he was breaking apart. "Subaru...you...I..."_

_He screamed._

**AN:** So, I haven't published anything here (or anywhere) for about two years. Hmm. I started this piece over a year ago, wrote a lot, and then stopped. I ran out of juice entirely. And I'm still struggling some. This was originally meant to be published as a one-shot, but I decided to break it up into chapters and see if that helped. I have about another 25K words already written but I'm sitting on them. A review would also help. :) The chaptered version doesn't flow very well.

I usually think original characters are bullshit, or almost always badly done, but hoot the hey…Subaru is still the dominant presence.


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